US completes withdrawal from Iraq; Ali al‑Zaidi names October 1 a Day of Sovereignty

After more than a decade, American forces on 1 October, 2026 completed their withdrawal from the remaining US military bases in Iraq, ending a deployment that began in 2014 to fight the Islamic State (IS).

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi said the day after the coalition left should be marked as a Day of Sovereignty. "It is 'a national event that confirms the completion of Iraq's path to sovereignty and consolidates the presence of the state and its institutions'," leaders of the executive, legislative and judicial branches said on Monday.

US troops were first deployed to Iraq and Syria in 2014 as part of the campaign against the extremist group Islamic State. IS was defeated in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria in 2019, but coalition forces remained to pursue remaining fighters and cells.

Regional reactions and security concerns

Iran and its allies welcomed the US pullout. Tehran views the departure as a victory for its so‑called "axis of resistance" — the network of allied armed groups across the region — and has long advocated for the removal of American military presence from the Middle East.

The withdrawal has also raised worries that security in Iraq and the wider region could deteriorate. Officials and analysts fear Iran-backed Shiite militias may seek greater influence and control, and there are concerns the security vacuum could allow Islamic State to regroup and reassert itself.

The full US pullout comes 23 years after the US‑led coalition toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003. The withdrawal was agreed in 2024 during the tenure of then‑US president Joe Biden; its implementation is now taking place under Donald Trump, even as the United States continues to wage war against Iran.

Photo: press material from the event